Ham Radio Licensing
From Start To Finish
To operate a Ham Radio you must have an FCC License.
HARC will lead you through the entire process. Everything is done online. You can prepare for and take your exam from the comfort of your home, or wherever you may be.
Step 1
Register for Free On Hamstudy.org
Go to hamstudy.org and create a free account. It's important to create an account to be able to keep track of your study progress. We have seen the best results from people who use hamstudy to prepare for their Ham Radio License exams, and it is FREE to use.
Step 2
Choose What Level License To Study For
Choose the class of license you want to study for, Technician, General or Extra. Keep in mind if you are not licensed you must test first for the Technician Class
Step 3
3 Modes To Study
Once you have created an account on hamstudy.org you choose the License class exam you want to study for. Here you can see there are 3 choices, “STUDY MODE”, “READ QUESTIONS”, and “PRACTICE TEST”.
To start we suggest using the “READ QUESTIONS” section so that you get a sense of what to expect and get to see every question and correct answer.
Then we suggest shifting to the “STUDY MODE” where you will again be shown every question again but must take a guess at the correct answer. Don’t worry about getting the wrong answer because in this mode it will keep asking the same question until you start to get it right. You will be able to keep track of your aptitude (as seen in the pic)
Finally, once your overall aptitude is 80% or over, we suggest using the “PRACTICE TEST” mode. If your percentages in this mode are similar to the “STUDY MODE” percentages then you will be ready for your exam. We hope this is helpful for you and wish you the best chance of success.
Keep in mind, “STUDY MODE” is the most effective way to assure your success at passing your exam. It will keep track to let you know when you have been exposed to seeing every possible question and answer for your class license exam that are in the FCC question pool.
Final Steps
When You Are Ready To Test
Find A Session
From the home page of Hamstudy.org click on the "Find a Session" button on top right.
Choose Your Session Time
To test online click on the "Remote" button and you can Choose a specific VEC or show all. Ham America Radio Club uses W5YI and ARRL. We have regular sessions Monday and Thursday evenings at 1800 (6:00pm) CST using the W5YI VEC. If needed, we can set a specific session time using either VEC for your convenience.
Prepare Your Test Area
Once you are admitted to the virtual zoom meeting, the volunteer examiner team will be asking to see your ID. Please have your ID available.
The volunteer exam team will then ask for a 360˚ view of your testing area at eye level. Following that the team will ask to see a top down view of the desk/table that your computer will be sitting on. Please be sure to clear the area of any study materials. You can have a blank sheet of paper and a pen for scrap paper.
Finally, make sure that the computer/device you will be testing from has all apps closed except for the zoom app and a browser of your choice. Please have only one tab open in your browser.